Controlling device for aeroplanes.



J. C. FOLEY.

CONTROLLING DEVICE FOR AEROPLANES.

APPLICATION man JAN. 16. 1918.

Patented M1230, 1918.

INVENTOR: @0265 [3' 75/69 ATTORNEY s in,

JAMES C. FOLEYfOF SEATTLE, WASHINGTON, AS$IGN01R T BUEING AIRPLANE CUM- ranr, 'or snar'rrn, wa'smne'ron,

A CORPORATION OF WASHINGTON.

CONTROLLING DEVICE FOR AEROPLANES.

rename,

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented am; so, rare.

llpplication filed January 16, 191a. $cria11to.2l2,026.

To all whom it may concern citizen of the United States, residing at Se\ s to foot-actuated devices for steering and attle, inthe county of King and State of Washington, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Controlling Devices for Aeroplanes, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to controlling devices for aeroplanes and, more particularly,

regulatingthe throttle valve of'the motor of such vehicles. p

The object of the'present invention is to provide ;in connection with a steering foot lever a treadle for use in controlling the motors throttle valve, which the operatorcan conveniently regulate with one of his feet without removing the same from the steering lever and in any positionof the latter. 7

The invention consists in the novel -construction, adaptation and combination of parts, as will be hereinafter described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 i is a plan view of apparatus embodying my invention showing the same applied to aeroplane steering devices. Fig. '2 is a vertical longitudinal section of the same with the pedal thereof operatively connected to a throttle valve. Fig. 3 is'a horizontal section through 3-3 of Fig. 2.

In the drawings, 5 represents a horizontally disposed foot lever secured at its mid length to a vertically disposed tubular ful-' crum shaft 6 which is journaled in a sleeve 7- depending' from'a suitable standard such as 8. The lever 5 is connected from its ends by cables 9 with the tiller yoke 10 of a. rudder, indicated by 11. The arms of said lever are formed at 12 and 12 of the operator. A.

' bearing boxes 13 secured to to receive the feet Journaled in said foot lever is a shaftlt having near one end an arm 15 which is connected by a wire or rod 16 with an arm 1'? of a bell-crank lever which is fulcrumed to a transverse shaft 18 mounted in boxes, as 19, provided on the standard 8.v The other arml? of said 1ever is connected by a cable 20 with the handle arm 21 of a throttle valve 21 provided in the engine pipe 22.

As shown, said throttle valve is normally held in a substantially closed position by a spring 23. Thebell-crank arm 17 extends through slots provided" in the aforesaid sleeve 7 and tubular shaft 6 so that the rod 16 will be disposed in, or in proximity to,

theaxis of the latter.

24 represents a pedal arm extending from the shaft 14 and having a stirrup-shaped extre'n1ity'25 toaccommodate the front portion or toe of the operators foot, preferably the right one, which bears against the lever part 12.

In the use of my invention, the operator retains his feet against the arms 12--12 of the steering leverb for oscillating the same to control the rudder.' With the toe of his right foot he presses against the stirrup 25 of pedal 24: to move the latter and the arm 15 into the positions, for example, in which they are represented by dotted lines 24 and 15 in Fig. 2.

The bell-crank lever 17-17 is thereby moved, through the medium of the connection 16, into the dotted line position 17 --l7", resulting in the cable 20 being in:

- fiuenced to .afiord an opening movement to the valve 21 in opposition to the spring 23 which'tends to retain the valve in its closed position.

The rotary movements of the hollow shaft 6 with the foot lever 5 is compensated for b the turning or twisting of the rod 16 about its'longitudinal axis so that the oscillatory movements of the foot lever and its fulcrum shaft 6 has no efi'ect on the throttle valve whose opening movements must be accomplished by the pedal devices through the agency of the operators foot. When the pedal is released, the spring 23 asserts its power to restore the valve into its closed position. I

What ll claim, is-

1. Tn an aeroplane, the combination with a foot lever connected with the, rudder of i the aeroplane, of a treadle device carried by said foot lever, connections between said treadle device and an operative part of the aeroplanes motor, said treadle device being arranged to be actuated coincidently with or independently of the operating of said foot lever.

2. In an aeroplane, the combination with the rudder thereof, a foot lever operatively connected with said rudder for steering purposes, another operative part of the aeroplane, a treadle device mounted on said foot lfltl instrumentality of the pedal device from any position of the foot lever.

In an aeroplane, the combination with a steering foot lever having a tubular fulcrum, a standard supporting said foot lever and provided with a journal bearing for the lever fulcrum, a throttle valve, and means tending to retain said valve in its closed position, of a pedal device carried on said lever, and operative connections including a torsional rod extendingthrough said fulcrum for opening the valve through the instrumentality of said pedal device.

4. The combination with a steering foot lever of an aeroplane, a tubular fulcrum for said lever, a support for said fulcrum, an engine throttle valve, means to 'yieldingly retain the latter in its closed position, and a bell-crank lever operatively connected to said valve, said foot lever and adapted to be actuated by the toe of one of the operators feet without removing such foot from the foot lever, and means extending through said tubular fulcrum connected with said pedal device and the bell-crank lever to cooperate with said means for controlling the throttle valve.

5. In an aeroplane, a steering foot-lever having a tubular fulcrum, a standard hav- -ing a. journal bearing for said fulcrum, a

throttle valve, a pedal device mounted on said foot-lever, and operative connections between said pedal device and the throttle valve, said connections including a torsional rod extending through said tubular ful- Waslr, this 2nd day of JAMES C. FOLEY.

V crum.

Signed at Seattle, January, 1918.

Witnesses E. PETERSON, PIERRE BARNES.

of a pedal device connected to 

